Scythes in Games

Baneat

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targren said:
( but I had already quit the game because they started selling power for real money)
WAIT WHAT!? That goes against the foundations on what that game is built on, more info dude? I quit years ago because it just started to rot completely.
 

Sean951

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thedoclc said:
Souplex said:
We've been over this before; Scythes are a poor choice for a weapon, and those who think otherwise have poor opinions.
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.70517-Scythes#694172
Everyone pointing out that a scythe is a terrible weapon in the real world are right. And yes, someone can go ahead and pull up war scythes for a pragmatic adaptation for poor folk who needed a weapon.

However,the OP has already stated it's an "impractical" weapon chosen "for aesthetic purposes." Choosing a scythe as a weapon in a game is appropriate if the game values style over historical accuracy and likewise silly if you want realism. The OP ceded this point at the start and asked about STYLE, not practical combat.

So yes in fantasy, no in Total War. The death symbolism, of death as the great harvester before whom all are cut down as so much wheat in the fall, pretty much guarantees it'll show up from time to time. Also, just the choice to use a scythe immediately tells you something about the character in universe. Instant characterization for the visually oriented or just plain lazy.

Back OT: Shadows of the Damned, Castlevania, NWNs and surely some of the other D&D based games, Chrono Trigger, some of the Ninja Gaidens, VtM Bloodlines (in the form of a giant pruning hook), Darkstalkers, the Drowning Doom horsemen in Brutal Legend...I can't think of many off hand. In a stylized, actiony game, it can be pulled off with sheer chutzpah. The Drowning Doom horse looked great in that 'verse.
Total War... You mean that game with Roman ninjas and shield-less Spartans? I love the series, but they don't always follow realism and occasionally give in to the urge to put silly units in.
 

sanquin

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Dan DePuy said:
This would be a good point, but a battle scythe is not a thing. At no point in history has any culture ever used a scythe as a weapon. If you still disagree, I await your attempt at using a scythe in this manner. A halberd can cut in multiple directions and be utilized and maneuvered in the way a quarterstaff is used. A scythe, as a weapon, could cut at or around the knee level of your enemy. That is it. It has no defensive utility nor can a missed cut be followed up with another, and the haft is curved and too cumbersome to be used as a staff.
The only culture battle scythes are used in is in fantasy culture. Though kung-fu people did alter their farming equipment to be better used as a weapon, so also the scythe.
 

Gaiseric

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You can use a scythe in Demon's Souls.

I don't know if it is any good because I've never used it.
 

LarenzoAOG

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The scythe is a farming implement, it has nothing to do with combat, and it would probably be very difficult to use in combat.

I guess the whole scythe as a weapon thing started out with the Grim Reaper, but it makes sense for him to have a scythe, he has been known as a "harvester of souls" but to see a scythe used as a melee weapon seems a bit silly.

In fact, I want to see less scythes in video games, and I want to see a Grim Reaper like entity with a sword, or hell, even a gun, how awesome would that be? Grim Reaper who kills with a revolver or something, hold on I'm gonna write this down...
 

Sean951

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sanquin said:
Dan DePuy said:
This would be a good point, but a battle scythe is not a thing. At no point in history has any culture ever used a scythe as a weapon. If you still disagree, I await your attempt at using a scythe in this manner. A halberd can cut in multiple directions and be utilized and maneuvered in the way a quarterstaff is used. A scythe, as a weapon, could cut at or around the knee level of your enemy. That is it. It has no defensive utility nor can a missed cut be followed up with another, and the haft is curved and too cumbersome to be used as a staff.
The only culture battle scythes are used in is in fantasy culture. Though kung-fu people did alter their farming equipment to be better used as a weapon, so also the scythe.
I'll just leave this [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_scythe] right here... Yes, it's not the standard scythe, but the point of it's existence remains.
 

XandNobody

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Dan DePuy said:
sanquin said:
@Dan DePuy:
Battle scythes aren't shaped liked regular farming scythes though. But your point does still stand. It's like a hallbert, but less effective. Just not as less effective as you claim it to be.
This would be a good point, but a battle scythe is not a thing. At no point in history has any culture ever used a scythe as a weapon. If you still disagree, I await your attempt at using a scythe in this manner. A halberd can cut in multiple directions and be utilized and maneuvered in the way a quarterstaff is used. A scythe, as a weapon, could cut at or around the knee level of your enemy. That is it. It has no defensive utility nor can a missed cut be followed up with another, and the haft is curved and too cumbersome to be used as a staff.
Okay, really? I mean, I agree with your point, and I think that a normal scythe as a weapon in real life combat is just about as practical as trying to call a push lawnmower a melee weapon, but really?

Ahem, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_scythe

And before you make the point that it's not a scythe because they changed the position of the blade, note sanguin specifically mentioning that they aren't shaped the same. A simple Google search, it is your friend.
 

elbowlick

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Zero_ctrl said:
Darksiders 2, anybody?
"
I kind of pictured death to be frailer.

OT: One of the more powerful weapons in Drakengard was a scythe, Death's scythe in fact. Although, I think that's the only one in that game, there might've been more in the sequel.
 

Jaime_Wolf

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They're neat and I've always thought they made a pretty attractive weapon in terms of making characters and fighting look unique. And I liek the amount of them around right now - if they were everywhere they'd lose their unique charm.

Also, let's bear in mind that there are some games that scythes really don't fit in. Namely games going for any sort of realism or relatively low fantasy. They're not realistically very good weapons. There's a reason why armies didn't really ride into battle wielding scythes despite their seeming ubiquity within a primarily agricultural society.
 

Gaiseric

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Dan DePuy said:
sanquin said:
@Dan DePuy:
Battle scythes aren't shaped liked regular farming scythes though. But your point does still stand. It's like a hallbert, but less effective. Just not as less effective as you claim it to be.
This would be a good point, but a battle scythe is not a thing. At no point in history has any culture ever used a scythe as a weapon. If you still disagree, I await your attempt at using a scythe in this manner. A halberd can cut in multiple directions and be utilized and maneuvered in the way a quarterstaff is used. A scythe, as a weapon, could cut at or around the knee level of your enemy. That is it. It has no defensive utility nor can a missed cut be followed up with another, and the haft is curved and too cumbersome to be used as a staff.
The Dacians used the falx(a war scythe or sickle) against the Romans to good effect. The Romans added reinforcing crosspieces to their helmets because the falx could split the helmet open and changed their armor to better protect against it.
 

Zero_ctrl

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elbowlick said:
Zero_ctrl said:
Darksiders 2, anybody?
"
I kind of pictured death to be frailer.

OT: One of the more powerful weapons in Drakengard was a scythe, Death's scythe in fact. Although, I think that's the only one in that game, there might've been more in the sequel.
You have to realize that this is the sequel to Darksiders, whose main character looked like this:

 

Lt. Vinciti

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Well I didnt notice it but..

Postal 2 Apocalypse Weekend had one

or

Postal 2 A Week in Paradise for use in all 7 days

It was pretty brutal....cut people in half...threw it thru about 7 people waiting to cash my check

Beyond that its like a spear....but worse....Never saw the appeal of using one (beyond above of the damage output was nice)
 

AzureRaven

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Arluza said:
.//Hack G.U (starting with episode 2) has scythes as a weapon choice. I REALLY love them in this game.

Aika Online looks to have turned the Warlock's Staff into a Scythe in the lvl 72 armor which came out this week.

I know of no other games that feature scythes as a weapon. If they are out there, i've never played them.
Ninja'd!
I love using the Scythe in .hack//G.U.
And technically, you use them in the first game too, if you count the fights involving Skeith. Not as cool when actually using it, but still neat.

EDIT: Might as well include a picture of one from the game.
 

Silva

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Scythes are ridiculously impractical as weapons, but they look really cool, so yeah, they should be in more games. Especially considering how much more ridiculous weapons get in games as it is.

And yes, the Final Fantasy series has been known to include some scythes, especially in the franchise's MMOs.

The Devil May Cry series has many demonic opponents who use scythes. Some of them are even the most common enemy in their iteration, such as the sand bag demons in DMC3.

ThatLankyBastard said:
I personally enjoy the Glaive more, but Scythes are also particularly badass weapons...

...and I would kill someone to have Scythes in Skyrim!

Seriously...
I'm sure a mod will come out for Skyrim to add scythe weapons even if they're not in the original game. I've seen a few in heavily modded versions of Oblivion. The Elder Scrolls community has been great at this sort of thing for ages.
 

Raddra

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There was a thread on this not long ago.

Short summary: Scythes are terrible weapons and anyone who had held one in real life (note:me) can tell you its absolutely terribly unbalanced and a terrible thing to use in combat whereby you'll usually be better off using your fists.

I remember back in NWN I used to get really frustrated when I saw people weaponmastering Scythes for the x5 crit and actually being viable since I knew that scythes don't work in combat. At all.
 

ImperialSunlight

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I recall a scythe in Fantasy Star Online Ep. 1/2 and Fable 1.

Though, the ones in Fable sucked ass and were called pickhammers :/

Oh, and the character "Scythe" from Fable uses a scythe :p
 

elbowlick

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Zero_ctrl said:
elbowlick said:
Zero_ctrl said:
Darksiders 2, anybody?
"
I kind of pictured death to be frailer.

OT: One of the more powerful weapons in Drakengard was a scythe, Death's scythe in fact. Although, I think that's the only one in that game, there might've been more in the sequel.
You have to realize that this is the sequel to Darksiders, whose main character looked like this:

Yeah, but that's war. He's supposed to be a buff dood with a bigass sword. I'm just suprised they didn't go with full plate (or Guts).
 

crudus

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People don't talk about them because there isn't really anything to add. "They look badass" goes without saying. People know it symbolizes death and has the highest crit modifier. There really isn't more to say on the topic. That being said, I think it would take away from the impact of the scythe and our associations with it if we say it too often. It really should only be used for harbingers of death.

Dan DePuy said:
Scythes are not weapons. THREAD OVER.
Thread un-over.

Souplex said:
We've been over this before; Scythes are a poor choice for a weapon, and those who think otherwise have poor opinions.
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.70517-Scythes#694172
viranimus said:
Well considering I saw a long multi page thread less than a month ago, for a "Weapon" that is about as practical in melee combat as a long shard of glass, I think sythes dont go unnoticed and get their due measure.

As for its style over substance. I get it. Its the weapon of death. Its big, its long. But knowing the practical applications of it as a weapon pretty much removes any wow factor it has for me.
I would like to point out that a <a href=http://medieval.stormthecastle.com/images/polearms/war-scythe.jpg>war scythe is a totally real thing and used (successfully) as late as 1921! They were effective, used in many peasant uprisings, and is really simple to make provided you have an actual scythe. It is even possible they were the precursor to the halberd. However war scythes aren't nearly as badass as regular scythes which means none of what I said matters in a game world. Who plays a game for practicality of the weapons?